“Throughout history, it has been the inaction of those who could have acted; the indifference of those who should have known better; the silence of the voice of justice when it mattered most; that has made it possible for evil to triumph.”
Haile Selassie

Sunday, July 19, 2015

While the media obsesses over supposed extremism of some Republican presidential candidates, it ignores extremism among Democrats that will surely turn off a lot of mainstream voters. Take what happened at the Netroots Nation townhall meeting yesterday. CNN reports:

A [Phoenix] town hall for liberal activists featuring two Democratic presidential candidates was interrupted by dozens of demonstrators on Saturday who shouted down the contenders and demanded they address criminal justice issues and police brutality.

Former Maryland Gov. Martin O'Malley and Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders planned to
attend a public sit-down interview with journalist Jose Antonio Vargas in front of a left-leaning crowd here at the annual Netroots Nation conference, a gathering of progressives, when the tone of the program shifted just a few minutes into the event.

O'Malley was answering questions from Vargas on stage when dozens of boisterous conference attendees flooded through a side door and shouted down the White House contender.

"What side are you on my people?" they sang in unison as they approached.

Tia Oso of the Black Alliance for Just Immigration, who represented the demonstrators, climbed onto the stage, secured a microphone, and delivered a speech while O'Malley looked on.

"We are going to hold this space. We are going to acknowledge the names of black women who have died in police custody. And Governor O'Malley, we do have questions for you ... As the leader of this nation, will you advance a racial justice agenda that will dismantle -- not reform, not make progress -- but will begin to dismantle structural racism in the United States?"

"Yes," O'Malley replied, but before he could say more, the demonstrators in front of the stage shouted over him by reciting names of black women who have died in police custody....

"I think all of us as Americans have a responsibility to recognize the pain and the grief throughout our country from all of the lives that have been lost to violence, whether that's violence at the hands at the police or whether that's violence at the hands of civilians," O'Malley said, before being interrupted again.

"Don't generalize this s***!" one person shouted back.

...

The demonstrators started shouting and booing again when O'Malley said: "Black lives matter. White lives matter. All lives matter."

For saying all lives matter, O'Malley had to issue an apology. He left the stage changing: "Black lives matter! Black lives matter!"

Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders didn't fair any better with the protestors. The CNN story continues:

When Sanders approached the stage a moment later, the demonstrators continued. The candidate, a favorite of Netroots Nation, threatened to leave if they continued to interrupt him.

"Black lives, of course, matter. I spent 50 years of my life fighting for civil rights and for dignity," he said. "But if you don't want me to be here, that's OK. I don't want to outscream people."

After talking over one another, Sanders eventually ditched pre-planned remarks and tried to address questions from demonstrators.

...

"Black people are dying in this country because we have a criminal justice system which is out of control, a system in which over 50% of young African-American kids are unemployed," Sanders said. "It is estimated that a black baby born today has a one in four chance of ending up in the criminal justice system."

When Sanders cited the Affordable Care Act as a law he supported that helped people of color by making health insurance more accessible, one man shouted, "we can't afford that!"

Before Sanders finished speaking, many of the protesters walked out on him toward exit doors in the back.

There should be zero tolerance for people who insist on interrupting events like this. They should have been immediately detained by police and escorted out of the building. Your free speech right does not include the right to interrupt the speech of other people.

But from a political perspective that a Democratic presidential candidate felt compelled to apologize for saying "all lives matter" show how extremists have taken over the nomination process of the Democratic Party. Even a spokesperson for Netroots Nation couldn't bring herself to condemn the people who ruined the event stating: "Although we wish the candidates had more time to respond to the issues, what happened today is reflective of an urgent moment that America is facing today."

4 comments:

Anonymous
said...

Paul, you will be castigated for writing the truth in this report of the extremist out of touch leftists liberal Democrats when it comes to the divisive slogan "Black Lives Matter" as if "Asian Lives", and "White Lives" or "Spanish Lives" do not matter or the implication by leftists that Caucasians, Asians, the Spanish, etc., or any race other than "Black" are more meaningful. That a liberal Democrat like O'Malley is cowed by the antics of these rude, boorish, aggressive persons who shut down their is just stunning.

We are more and more broken down into groups that the Statists use to create envy, hatred, and distrust. And for all that "hope" about a "change" for better race relations... we are turned into a house divided and there is a reason for that.

About Me

I have been an attorney since the Fall of 1987. I have worked in every branch of government, including a stint as a Deputy Attorney General, a clerk for a judge on the Indiana Court of Appeals, and I have worked three sessions at the Indiana State Senate.
During my time as a lawyer, I have worked not only in various government positions, but also in private practice as a trial attorney handing an assortment of mostly civil cases.
I have also been politically active and run this blog in an effort to add my voice to those calling for reform.